Collembola

Description

Members of the Collembola Family are relatively small, typically less than 6 millimeters in length, with as many as six abdominal segments [1]. They have a tubular appendage called a collophore, which protrudes from the first abdominal segment. The collophore used to be thought to be a stabilizing mechanism for the collembola when it jumped by sticking to the surface on which it landed. More recent research has concluded that the collophore is used in osmoregulation, water intake, and excretion [2].

References

1. Davies, W. Maldwyn (1927). "On the tracheal system of Collembola, with special reference to that of Sminthurus viridis, Lubb" (PDF). Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science. 71 (281): 15–30.

2. Eisenbeis, G., 1982. Physiological absorption of liquid water by Collembola: absorption by the ventral tube at different salinities. Journal of Insect Physiology 28:11–20.